Features Paxton People UNITE!!! Centrifugal Supercharger Technical Information!!

There used to be some really small,very efficient centrifugal s on the market under the Rotrex brand.I haven't seen any in a few years,so I don't know if they are still available.


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Glad I found this site. I just bought a '52 F1. It came with a rebuilt '53 Merc engine with a Mccoullach VS-57. Engine sounds amazing. Does anyone have info on converting the VS-57 to SN? Do you just change the pulley? Do you still use the solenoid? I will post pictures latter.

 

Post up some video of that truck too if you can!
I believe if you read back a couple of pages in this thread there is contact info for a couple of Paxton/McCulloch gurus..

Scott


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Rotrex is still making small package blowers for OT Honda cars. And there is another manufacturer Sprintex also making small blowers for OT Hondas but it looks more like a roots type.

 

Ok, this thread needs to come back. I'm starting to look for a VS or a SN for a 4cyl (OT) in a Model A.

 

Yeah, really old. Conley and Erb are still around, do yourself a favor and start with a good unit. Brackets are probably a fabrication. The bird in my avatar ran an SN, and the roadster still has a VR unit, pass. car F code brackets from Frank Rice, before he sold the molds to Mummert.

The bird was all custom brackets. Hint-to tension the belt I used a later model serpentine belt tensioner off a GMC diesel. Worked better than an adjustable bracket.

 

Is there anyway to tell from the outside if the unit is ok to use. I might be going to look at a VS unit.

 

The conversion from VS 57 to SN 60 is not difficult at all. All that is required is to remove the variable speed pulley mechanism and cut off the front of the housing so that the input shaft is exposed. I would never run a unit until I took it down for inspection. They are easy to rebuild, but the parts are fairly expensive. I recently converted and installed one on my 261 Chevy I6 with great results. I can post pictures if anyone is interested. I am in the process of building another unit with ceramic bearings and a heat sink on the front of the oil reservoir. Heat has always been a problem with these units especially if you are pushing them hard. There are oil coolers available, but they require an oil pump, heat exchanger, hoses, etc. I am looking for a simpler solution. I was able to reduce the oil temp approx. 5% by changing to B&M synthetic transmission fluid, but it still runs at 200+ degrees on a 75 degree day. I would like to get it well below 200 if possible.

 

Please post pictures, I'm looking at running one on a 4cyl.

 

Here you go. If you have any questions please let me know. Most people cut off the entire snout which requires cutting the badge in half. I wanted to retain the full badge so I left the portion where it fits. Also, I cut mine in a mill because I have one, but it could be done in a lathe if you don't care about the badge. You could possibly cut it with an air saw or jig saw if necessary.

 

I got the ceramic balls and bearings in today for my new modified McCulloch SN 60 conversion. Pretty cool looking. I hope they work as well as they look. The drive balls are less than half the weight of the steel ones and the ball bearings spin forever. Just waiting for the rest of the parts so I can get going on it although I did start cutting off the housing today.
I'm not well schooled on the proper etiquette for posting on this forum. If anyone is interested I would like to document the building of the new unit, but I don't want to hijack this thread. If I am stepping on your toes BloodyKnuckles let me know and I will start another thread.

 

I would be very interested in details of stripping down and rebuilding these superchargers. I have 3 of them on a shelf in the garage, condition unknown. Wouldn't mind using one 'as is' if it checked out in good condition but it would also be interesting to see the latest improvements. I knew they had better impellers but the ceramic ball bearings are news to me.

 

Incidentally for anyone who prefers the SN model, they sold thousands of them for Mustangs and Camaros and used ones turn up frequently. Usually about $250 to $500 depending how complete the accessory package is. A much better deal than modifying an old VS57.

 

Me too. That motor looks great.

 

While I was waiting for some parts to come in I started modifying my housing. I also received my heat sink material and machined it to fit the front of the unit. I don't know if it is going to help or not, but I think it looks pretty cool.

 

I finally got all the parts in for my supercharger including a H/O impeller. Which is a stock impeller that has been recut to give it a hook on the inlet.fins. I assume to grab the air a little more efficiently. I was going to try to put it together today, but I had to many interruptions. I don't like to have any distractions when I am assembling an engine or any other precision piece like this. As I was cleaning and measuring the parts for this unit I was impressed with the precision of the castings and machine work. Especially considering it is 60 years old. I guess it is true what they say about old fashioned American workmanship.

 

Damned neat diceman!!! Any chance of a bunch more pictures as you go through assembly on this?

 

It stikes me that it doesn't really look like these are that complicated to assemble/dissassemble after looking at your pictures. 'Course, we all know how that works...

 

Thanks, and you're right they are not difficult to work on except for the cast iron sealing rings on the output shaft. If you're not careful you can break them. (Don't ask me how I know.) I will post some assembly pictures.

 

THAT WOULD LOOK GOOD IN MY 1954 COMMANDER,HAVE A 63 289 C.I. WITH A R1 CAM,CARTER 4 BARREL,AND DUEL EXHAUST

 

After building Airsoft machine guns for my friends most of the day Sunday I finally got a little quiet time to work on the supercharger.



Here are the pictures I promised.

 

I finally got my new supercharger with the heat sink and ceramic bearings installed and tested. I could tell right away that it is smoother and quieter the the old one. I don't see any more boost with it, but I really didn't expect to since boost is a product of impeller RPM. All the ratios are the same as before. There may be a little less power consumed by the new unit because of the ceramic bearings. I can tell you that it is much easier to turn by hand on the bench. I don't know how that translates to actual running on the engine. My ass is not sensitive enough to tell.

I am happy to say that the heat sink and bearings did keep the oil temps down compared to the old unit. It was earlier in summer when I tested the old unit and the ambient temperature was 74 degrees. The highest oil temperature on my 14 mile test run at 70 MPH was 209 degrees. Today the ambient temperature is 99 degrees and the highest oil temp was 205 degrees. I think 4 degrees cooler with a 25 degree higher ambient is significant. I will probably test it again on a cooler day just for grins.

On to the next project. Converting my old Enderle mechanical fuel injection unit to EFI for my Merc.

Here are some pictures of my test rig, which consists of a thermocouple for my meter and inserted into the oil sump on the supercharger.

 

Damned cool Diceman! Thank you very much for taking the time to do this!

 

My pleasure. If I can be of any help please let me know.

 

Very kool thread and thanks so much for your contribution to it Diceman! I have a complete, original, vs57 kit for my 57 Eldorado coupe and now I know exactly what I'm up against when I get into that thing!

 

That's bad ass. At the risk of sounding uneducated, what are the extra holes in the heat sink cover for?